Meeting in Arendelle
by Gilraen Iathrim
Summary: A short story where Anna and Kristoff (and Sven) meet previously to the plot of the movie and have a small chat. Inspired by the first meeting of Hans and Anna and the coronation day, but set a few days earlier.


_A/N: Right, so I saw Frozen for the first time tonight (and totally fell in love with it). Arriving home, I got this idea of writing something where Anna and Kristoff meet previously to the coronation and the plot of the movie.  
It's a bit of an AU, but I think it turned out kind of cute. If you liked it please let me know in a review or message! :)_

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**Meeting in Arendelle [Frozen AU]**

Anna's eyes brightened with excitement as she passed through the gates of the castle and marvelled at the brightness of the day outside.

People were moving in every direction, their lives too busy or important for them to notice their princess moving among them. They had no idea that she had been allowed outside and that she was walking around like any other.

For Anna, this was something marvellous and she had to hold herself back harshly to not skip down the street in quite an embarrassing fashion.

Of course, she had never been one feeling ashamed of her own actions. She was known as quite clumsy and in her own opinion, she was also quite awkward. She had barely ever been able to hold a proper conversation with someone, without blurting out whatever came to her mind.

Some saw this as a virtue and envied her for being able to speak so freely, while most only thought her rude or badly raised.

She was neither of this, of course. Her mama and papa had both raised her in the fashion of a princess and she had always done her best of following what they had taught her. While Elsa always had been the more orderly of the two, Anna did know how to behave. She usually only got bored with following everyone else's rules and not being able to do things her own way.

This day, this spontaneous trip outside of the castle and into the heart of Arendelle, had required quite a lot of rule-breaking.

None had wished for her to leave the castle, no matter if the gates were open or not. But Anna, not wishing to listen to the words of the servants another day, had sneaked away straight after breakfast.

And here she was now, outside in the sunshine, enjoying the fresh air like any other person in their small town.

Her eyes ran over the stalls and little shops she passed, her fingers itching when she saw all the exotic and wonderful things for sale. She had so much money to buy things with, yet she kept herself away. She had a certain goal, which meant she had to wait until after it was accomplished.

"Watch your step!" The sudden sound of a voice and then something warm, soft, and also a little wet, met her face harshly, forcing her to the ground.

"Oh, I am so sorry!" Anna looked up, her eyes finding a young man standing beside a reindeer. From her awkward position on the ground, they looked like giants, making her feel small, but as the man extended a hand and pulled her up, she realised they were not as big as she had first thought.

The man was young, maybe the same age as her sister, and he had a kind face, which made her feel certain he was not angry with her. "I am so clumsy. Did I hurt you?" Her eyes flickered from the man to the reindeer, as if the animal too could reply.

"No, I'm all right. I just didn't want you to crash into Sven. He's not very fond of such things." The man patted the reindeer's neck and Anna smiled, seeing the obvious friendship and affection between the two.

"I can understand that. I'm not fond of walking into people... reindeers... anyone, either." Anna smiled shyly, knowing she had started her usual awkward rambling. "I'm very clumsy, though, so it usually happens a lot." She decided not to mention her living arrangements, knowing he probably wouldn't understand. No one had yet.

"Well, I'm glad you're not hurt." The man smiled, one of his large hands brushing a strand of blonde hair out of his face. "Sven can be like a brick wall sometimes." He laughed slightly, as the reindeer nudged him in the shoulder. It was almost like he understood what the man was saying.

"A very soft brick wall, I must say. Those I have met before was not as soft at all." Anna cursed herself, knowing she probably sounded as if she walked into walls all the time. Which, in a way, was part of the truth. She _had _done it quite a few times. "I'm Anna, by the way." She stretched a hand forward, not knowing fully if it was the proper thing to do.

"It's nice meeting you, Anna. I'm Kristoff." The young man shook her hand quickly, before releasing her much smaller hand and nodding towards the reindeer. "And this is Sven. Say hi, Sven." He shot the animal a sharp glance and the reindeer stepped forward carefully, nudging Anna's shoulder with his muzzle.

"Oh, hello Sven." Anna laughed carefully and ran a hand over his soft muzzle. "It is very nice meeting you too." She smiled at the reindeer, before turning back towards the man, Kristoff. "So, what are you doing here?" She knew it was probably not her business, but she found herself interested in the matter.

"Oh, we are just doing some work. Transporting things. Buying carrots. You know, the usual stuff." Kristoff shrugged his shoulders and crossed his arms over his chest. He made it sound like something everyone did. Anna guessed they didn't. She had never heard of anyone transporting things by the help of a reindeer only to afterwards buy something as normal as carrots.

"That sounds... nice." She smiled carefully. "I'm just out, looking for some things for my sister. It's her birthday tomorrow and I want to give her something special. She's coming of age, you see." Knowing Kristoff probably didn't care, she rambled on anyway, her eyes running around the small town square.

"Tomorrow? It's a popular day to come of age, I see. I heard Princess Elsa is doing the same. She's going to become queen too, it seems." Kristoff frowned in thought and Anna swallowed hard. She knew she should probably tell him who she was, but the words were hard to get out.

"I know. Elsa is, actually, my older sister." Anna bit her lip, prepared that he would start to bow or kneel before her. She didn't want to draw any attention to herself, but by telling someone of her identity she did just that.

"Oh." Kristoff raised his eyebrows in surprise, staring at her in confusion. It was obvious to her he had had no idea. "I'm sorry, Princess Anna, for not recognising you sooner."

"No, no, no, it's all right. And please, just call me Anna." She leaned a little closer, to be able to lower her voice a little. "I'm undercover today." She smiled widely at him and he looked at her in surprise before nodding.

"I understand." His voice was no more than a whisper and he still looked quite confused as he spoke. He clearly didn't meet a lot of royalties. Or, well, not that anyone in Arendelle, except for those working in the castle, actually did. The gates to the castle were usually closed and Anna was barely ever allowed outside alone.

The reminder of the gates caused her to snap out of her thoughts and she straightened herself slightly.

"Oh, I should probably get going. I have to be back before they shut the gates again." She sighed, her eyes rising slightly to the blue sky above, before she looked back at Kristoff. "It was very nice talking to you, Kristoff. I hope we meet again." She smiled widely, feeling her cheeks heat as he met her gaze.

"Same to you, Anna. Hopefully it won't take too long." He slung an arm around Sven's neck, his hand brushing over the brown fur. "Good luck with finding a good gift." He smiled shyly, watching her nod in excitement.

"Thank you. I will see you sometime then, Kristoff." She turned to leave, but Sven nudging her in the back caused her to turn quickly. "Oh, and you too, Sven. Goodbye." She waved towards the two, before she headed of through the crowd.

"Well, she was certainly something", Kristoff murmured to himself, doing his best to hide his smile as he turned back to continue his work. He didn't really want to reveal that he had actually liked the girl quite a bit. She was clearly someone special.


End file.
